Slow Cooker Cornish Hens

This is another dish that would be perfect to impress friends with!

Ingredients:

2 Cornish Hens

1 Durkee White Wine and Herb Seasoning Packet

1/4 Cup of Italian Vinaigrette Dressing

1/4 Cup of Water
1 Can of Chicken Broth
1 Bag of Baby Carrots
3 Sliced Potatoes

I put the hens in a bag with the seasoning, dressing, and water.  I shook this up and let it sit for 30 minutes. 

While the marinade was sitting, I poured the chicken broth in the slow cooker and added the carrots and potatoes.  Then, I added in the hens.  If the liquid does not graze the top of the hens, add additional water. 

I let this cook 7 hours on low, after it was finished with 7 hours, I pulled the hens out and all the meat fell right off the bone.  Then, I put the meat back in the crock pot for another hour to soak up more of the juices. 

This is the perfect dish for a busy day, all of the veggies cook in the slow cooker as well making it minimal cooking for you!  This made 4 servings for us with 2 hens. 

Even better, the smell is amazing!

Bagel Failure

I write this blog to share my good and bad experience of learning to cook.  Lately, I've had nothing but success it seems.  The recipes I have been whipping up are very tasty and easy!

Let me say this, the bagels were not easy, fast, or tasty!  I am actually fairly certain I lost 6 hours of my life that I will never get back trying to make homemade bagels.  Meanwhile, in the back of my mind I keep telling myself, I could get a bag of bagels for $1.50 at the store, that are ready to eat!  What fun would that be though?  Umm...much more fun than my experience!

I tried 3 different recipes, all of which did not turn out.  I put aside my need to improvise and change up recipes and followed them exactly because I wanted these to turn out.  None of them turned out.

I should have known better, when I opened up the package of yeast it jumped out at me!  Really it did.  I had yeast EVERYWHERE!  I have no idea how it flew out of the package but it was all over the place!

It seems the hardest part for me was shaping the bagels because the dough was hard to work with being that it stuck to my fingers.  I thought the last batch was actually going to turn out, but they were shaped like bagels with no taste.  My husband was brave enough to try one, I did not!

In the end, I have learned to leave the bagel making to the experts and stick with breads, muffins, pancakes, and waffles!

Wordless Wednesday

A whole new world.

Chicken Tortilla Casserole

Let me start by saying, this was one of those dishes that you can't judged by looks.  It's good!  I found this recipe in an OSU Cookbook from my mom.  I tweaked it a bit.

Ingredients:

1 10oz Can of Cream of Chicken Soup

1 12oz Can of Evaporated Skim Milk

8 oz of Black Beans (About 1/2 a can)

1 10oz Can of Rotel with Green Chilies, drained

2 Chicken Breast, cubed

6 Flour Tortilla's (I used burrito size)

1/2 Cup of Cheddar Cheese

Preheat oven to 350*.

I used nonstick cooking spray on the bottom of the skillet and then cooked the chicken. 

In a large bowl, mix the soup, milk, Rotel, black beans, and chicken.

Spray a casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray, then place 3 flour tortilla's on the bottom.  Pour 1/2 of the mixture over the tortilla's and top with 1/4 cup of cheese.  Repeat this step again, to make 2 layers.

Bake this in the oven for 45 minutes.

I originally made this dish without the Rotel; however, I would add the Rotel to give it a little bit of a kick!

I did not think this dish necessarily looked pretty when it came out of the oven, but it did taste very good.  This can be served with a side of rice; although, we ate it without a side since the major food groups were all met.

Remember your coupons!

Enjoy!

Pizza Pasta

This dish is perfect for kids of all ages!

Ingredients:

1 16oz box of Medium Shell Pasta

1 14oz Jar of Ragu Pizza Sauce

1 10oz Can of Diced Tomatoes

1 8oz Can of Tomato Sauce

1 Package of Pepperoni

1 Tsp Garlic Salt

1/2 Cup of Mozzarella Cheese

Preheat oven to 350*.

Boil the pasta as instructed on package in a large stock pot.  Once it's drained, return back to stock pot.

Pour in the Ragu, diced tomatoes, sauce, 20-25 pepperoni torn into small pieces, and salt into the pot.  Stir this all together until it is well coated.

Next, pour this mixture into a casserole dish.  I top off the noodles with whole pepperoni slices and then cheese.

This will bake in the oven for 15 minutes until the cheese is melted.  We served this with frozen peas. 

We just started to introduce tomato based foods to my son, and he was in love with this.  I thought he was going to try and lick the plate!  This is definitely kid friendly!

Baked Apple Cinnamon Doughnuts

In preparation for this recipe, I had fully intended on making 'real' doughnuts, that is until I saw how much oil was required! 

I immediately had mental pictures of my mom, who teaches diet classes, passing out when she saw that oil.  I could not bring myself to do it!  So, I ended up baking them, surprisingly, they were gone by the next morning!

Ingredients:

1 Can of Pillsbury Home Style Rolls (Do not use flaky)

2 Tbsp of Melted Butter

1 Cup of Powdered Sugar

1/4 Cup of Water

1/4 Cup of Applesauce

1 Tbsp of Cinnamon Sugar

Preheat the oven to 375*.

Spray a cookie sheet with non stick spray.  Then, place the biscuits on the cookie sheet, and begin cutting the holes out of each biscuit.  In order to cut the holes, I used the lid of a bottled water as my cutter.  It worked out perfectly.

Drizzle a small amount of melted butter over each doughnut.  Then, place in the oven for 10 minutes or until completely cooked.

Combine the powdered sugar, water, and applesauce in a small bowl.  This will be the sauce to drizzle over the donuts.  In another boil, pour the cinnamon sugar in it.

Once the donuts are out of the oven, drizzle the sauce over each donut.  Then, dip each donut in the cinnamon sugar to coat and let cool. 

I thought this tasted surprisingly well to be baked doughnuts.  They will not taste like a typical doughnut, so do not plan on them to.  My husband told me they tasted like doughnuts with a hint of biscuit.  He must have liked them though because he ate all but 2 of them, the only 2 I beat him to!

This is a nice alternative to deep fried doughnuts!

BBQ Spuds

I am simply in love with my Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken, so I thought we would have it again this past week. 

This time instead of making sandwiches out of it, I decided to try it on baked potatoes.

Using 4 large potatoes, I wrapped them in foil then cut a few slits around the potato.  I baked these in the oven at 400* for 1 hour or until they were soft.

Then, I cut them open and layered with toppings.  I started by using butter on the potato, added the meat, cheese, and chives.  Topped it off with a dollop of sour cream.

These were the perfect alternative to the stuffed potatoes that you get at many restaurants.  Typically, that is what I always order when we go out for BBQ.  I love that I can make it at home easily and save money!

Enjoy!

Turkey Pot Pie

After eating our Smoked Turkey, I knew we were going to have a TON of leftover turkey.

I am not usually a fan of pot pies; however, my husband loves them.  So, I thought I would utilize the leftovers to make this pot pie.  This is a pot pie that we had many times during my childhood.

Ingredients:

1 Cup Shredded Turkey

1 Can of Turkey Gravy

1/2 lb Frozen Mixed Veggies

1 Cup of Bisquick

2/3 Cup of Milk

1 Egg

1/4 Tsp of Pepper

Start by preheating the oven to 400*.  

In a bowl, mix the Bisquick, milk, and egg.  This will be the top of the pot pie.  

In another bowl, mix the turkey, gravy, veggies, and pepper.

Pour the turkey mixture into a round baking dish, then pour the Bisquick mixture over the top of the dish.  Spread the mixture evenly to cover the top.  

This will bake in the oven  for 30 minutes.

This was also a great item for my toddler.  It was full of veggies and meat which he loved!  It's perfect for a busy night when you just need a dish with all the food groups involved!

Banana Cream Pudding

I was not so sure when I first started to make this; however, by the time I woke up the next morning, some unknown critter must have eaten ALL of it!  (Also known as my husband!)

He has now been bugging me for a week to make this again because he says it was 'That Good!'.  I would have loved to know how good it was, but all I could do was lick the bowl by the time I got to it!

Ingredients:

1 Banana, sliced

1 Box of Banana Cream Pudding

1 Container of Cool Whip

Vanilla Wafers
1 Bag of Marshmallows (I used about 10-15)

Prepare the pudding as instructed on the package and set aside.

I used a square corning ware dish to prepare this in.  I put a layer of marshmallows on the bottom, then poured 1/2 the pudding on top of them.  I put a layer of wafers and banana's.  I poured the remaining pudding over this and then topped the dish with cool whip.  I used crumbled wafers and whole wafers to cover the top.

This is a picture of one without using Cool Whip; however, I believe Cool Whip is a must!  I just love it that much!

Let this chill in the fridge for 4-6 hours.  Great little treat after a long day, that is if you beat your husband to it!

Wordless Wednesday

Pure happiness.

Pineapple Chicken and Rice Stir Fry

I love stir fry and in particular I really love the taste of sweet n' sour chicken.  This was a great alternative to the fast food versions!

Ingredients:

2 Chicken Breast, Thawed and Cubed

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

1 8oz Can of Pineapple Chunks

1 Tbsp of Brown Sugar

1/2 Tsp Ginger

1 Tbsp Corn Starch

1/3 Cup of Lite Sodium Soy Sauce

1 Egg, beaten

1 Bag of Frozen Stir Fry Veggies
1/2 Cup Frozen Peas

2 Cups Brown Minute Rice

1 Cup Water

Cook the Minute Rice with the water in a small sauce pan. 

In a small bowl whisk together brown sugar, ginger, cornstarch, and soy sauce.

In a large skillet add the olive oil, and then cook the chicken until well done.  Once this is completely cooked, add in the veggies and let simmer for about 5 minutes.  Add in the cooked rice, soy sauce mixture, beaten egg, and pineapple.  This should simmer for about 10 minutes or until cooked through.

We ate this as a one dish meal since it had all the major food groups as part of the meal.  This was a nice, healthy twist to the typical stir fry dish!

Save money on this dish by printing coupons!!

This recipe is linked to, Delicious Dishes.

Menu Plan Monday

Get all your coupon's ready and check out this week's Menu Plan Monday on Money Saving Queen.

This menu plan features all of the recipes for this week along with the matching coupons in order for you to get each meal at the lowest possible price.

Happy Shopping!

Beef and Veggie Soup

Soup season is near!  I love fall for many reasons and a few of those would be soup, stew, and chili!  I decided that the weather was cool enough to have a soup day recently. 

Ingredients:

1 lb Ground Beef

1 Package of Pasta (I used Wacky Mac Noodles, FREE at Homeland a few months back!)

1 15oz Can of Tomato Sauce

1 10oz Can of Diced Tomatoes

1 14oz Can of Beef Broth

1/3 Cup of Red Cooking Wine

8 Cups of Water

1 Small Bag Frozen Mixed Veggies

2 Large Potatoes, Cut into chunks

1 Beef Bouillon Cube

1 Tsp of Parsley

Cook the ground beef in a skillet until well done. 

When the meat is done, combine the meat along with all other ingredients into a large stock pot.  Cook this to a boil and then let simmer for 30 minutes.

This makes enough to feed a small family for at least 4-5 days!  I typically will freeze the leftovers after a few days so that we have soup we can warm up on a later date.

I used Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix as a side with this meal. 

Find money saving coupons for frozen veggies here.

The perfect start to the fall season!

Smoked Turkey

My husband loves to smoke meat and we just happened to have a turkey breast that had taken up a home in our freezer.  We knew it was out there, we just did not have the time to cook it.  My husband decided he was going to smoke it this past weekend.

He marinated it with 1/2 Cup of Italian Dressing and Durkee Peppercorn marinade packet.  He let this sit overnight, then the smoking began!  It took about 4-5 hours to fully smoke the turkey and wow was it tasty!  There will be more turkey recipes to come using this turkey meat.  We were shocked by how much meat was on it.

I decided to use up the last Stove Top stuffing mix that I had and then made my own mashed potatoes.  I boiled 4 peeled potatoes, and added 1/3 cup of Skim milk then I blended them up using the handheld blender.

We added a piece of multi grain bread, topped the entire meal with brown gravy and enjoyed a our turkey dinner!

Remember to print your coupons for this meal before heading to the store!

Looking forward to smoked brisket coming very soon!

Mexican Meatloaf

This dish was introduced to me by my mother-in-law, one of many good dishes that she fixes!  This is also my husband's favorite meal, so he was more than happy for me to cook it regularly.

Ingredients:

1 lb of Ground Beef

1 Can Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup

1 Small Can of Green Chili's

1 16oz Jar of Picante Sauce

1 8oz Can of Tomato Sauce (I buy 15oz can and then save 1/2 for later use)

1 Cup of Brown Minute Rice (uncooked)

2 Cups of Shredded Colby Jack Cheese

1 Bag of Fritos, Crushed (optional)

Preheat oven to 350*.

In a skillet brown the meat until well done, then add in all ingredients except for Frito's and Cheese.  This needs to heat until it reaches a bubbling bowl.

Spray a baking dish with non-stick spray, then start layering your ingredients.  Pour 1/2 of the meat mixture on the bottom of the dish, then sprinkle with crushed Frito's and top with cheese.  Repeat this again for the next layer.

This will bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until crispy.

I typically ALWAYS use Frito's when I make this; however, I chose to skip the Frito's this time and I actually really enjoyed it just as much.  The Frito's add a crunch; however, without the Frito's it tasted more like a meatloaf.  This is a great meal and it's very easy, sure to please the entire family!

For sides with this I chose to use leftover black beans topped with diced tomatoes and corn on the cob.

Enjoy!

Fall Harvest Bake

Fall is my favorite season, I look forward to it each year.  I love the crisp air, pumpkin spice lattes, and the color brown!  Along with that, I love the different flavors that fall brings.  If I could give fall it's own taste, it would turn out a little something like this recipe.

Ingredients:

4 Chicken Thighs or Breast, thawed

1 Large Sweet Potato

1 Red Apple

1 Cup of Brown Rice

3 Cups of Water

1 Can of Cream of Chicken

2 Tbsp of Butter

1/2 Tsp of Cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400*.

Start by peeling the sweet potato and cutting into cubes.  Cut the red apple into cubes as well, I left the skin on the red apple.  In a small bowl melt the butter in the microwave and stir in the cinnamon.

Spray a baking dish with nonstick spray.  Place the rice in the bottom of the dish and mix with the water and cream of chicken.  Add the sweet potato and apples on top of the rice and then add the chicken.  Pour the butter and cinnamon mixture on top of each chicken thigh or breast.  Lastly sprinkle a dash of cinnamon over the top of the entire dish.

Place this in the oven for 45 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked.  I usually let this cook sometimes up to an hour until the liquid has cooked out of the rice.

If it looks like there is a lot of liquid left after 45 minutes, take the dish out of the oven and stir up the rice.  Then, put it back in for an additional 15 minutes.

The house will smell amazing and the moment you taste this, you will know fall is near!